Let’s talk aspiration. I hate to even bring it up. It is a word that makes physicians, speech-language pathologists (SLPs), and many people living with swallowing disorders cringe.  Why? If you have lived with dysphagia or cared for someone who has, you know that dysphagia and aspiration can be linked to potentially life-threatening complications, like aspiration pneumonia. So, when we talk about aspiration, we want to talk about reducing it. There are several causes of aspiration and a dysphagia treatment program needs to target those issues specifically to be effective. One reason food and/or liquid can enter the lungs is due to poor airway protection. This article reviews the emerging evidence that expiratory muscle strength training (EMST) is one treatment that can improve airway protection.

You may have heard the term biofeedback mentioned to you by your clinician or you may have come across it on this very site. Some of you may have even received swallowing therapy with the help of biofeedback. But what is it actually and why do speech-language pathologists use it?